𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐒𝐄 𝐃𝐀𝐘𝐒 | shisui uchiha

Haruki's 18th

"Psst, Haru-chan."

Haruki glanced around to see if there were any onlookers, before swiftly burying herself in the thicket of trees and bushes behind her.

Shisui laughed as he noted the serious look on his girlfriend's face, unfolding his arms as he opened them for a hug. The sun had slowly begun its descent, meaning that the couple had limited time to meet each other.

"Happy birthday!" exclaimed Shisui, wrapping his arms around Haruki as she entered his embrace. Since her 18th birthday was a special one marking her passage into adulthood, Haruki was required to celebrate it with the entire clan later on that night. And since she couldn't exactly invite Shisui, he'd had to think of a way to see her on her special day, even if for only a few minutes.

"Thank you," said Haruki gently, head resting on Shisui's chest. "I'm really sorry I couldn't invite you to my birthday celebration, though. Even though otou-san doesn't mind us dating... he still has some barriers he doesn't want you to cross."

"I told you, that's fine," chuckled Shisui, cradling the back of Haruki's head as he tightened his embrace. "Look, I just wanted to give you a present."

"You always want to," sighed Haruki in defeat, wishing that Shisui would refrain from his gift-giving habits. Although events such as birthdays and anniversaries were fine for her in terms of receiving presents, she found that most times when he returned from his missions, he would have a little trinket or gift that he'd bought specifically for her, especially when his missions involved visiting different countries for who knows what reason.

"You can't chastise me, you're always giving me presents," smiled Shisui as he pulled a small box out of his pocket. It was reminiscent of the one he had pulled out when he had given Haruki the necklace as his gift for their first anniversary, one which she always wore with the purple crystal necklace she shared with her sisters.

"They're not presents if they're replacing things you've either lost or destroyed," pushed back Haruki, a sly smile on her face as she looked up at Shisui.

"Hmm, but the last time I checked, my katana and clothes were perfectly fine," teased Shisui as he released Haruki, holding out the box in his palm. "What about those scrolls I said I really wanted but didn't need at the time? And that sick kusarigama! That was the best!"

"Whatever," said Haruki, flushing pink at being called out for her own gift-giving.

"Thank you for everything, Haru-chan," smiled Shisui, popping open the lid of the box. 

Haruki froze at the sight of the delicate silver ring that lay in the box. It was a simple silver band with a diamond shaped like a tear drop in the middle, and although it was beautiful, Haruki felt sick.

"Now, before you panic, don't worry! This isn't a proposal!" added Shisui in a hurry upon seeing the mortified look on his girlfriend's face. "Oh god, this was a gamble, I knew I should've just gotten the earrings! But I figured a ring would be less of a nuisance in battle than earrings!"

"Oh thank god," breathed Haruki, placing a hand over her heart as she let out a sigh of relief at Shisui's explanation surrounding the practicality of his gift. "Shisui, are you trying to give me a heart attack?!"

"Seeing your facial expressions gave me one! I swear you were about to dump me right there and then!"

"I was just surprised, that's all! Anyway, what is it?!"

"It's a promise ring! Look, I have one too!" Shisui held out his right hand, showing Haruki the plain silver band on his ring finger.

"Oh thank god," reiterated Haruki, placing a hand on her forehead as she looked up at the canopy of trees above them. Her heart still racing from the sudden shock, she shook her head as she straightened up, fanning herself as she faced Shisui. "God, Shisui! Maybe warn me before you open the box!"

"I know, I know, that was my bad," grimaced the Uchiha, taking off his ring and holding it up for Haruki to see. "Remember that necklace I got you for our first anniversary? And how you got me that bracelet?"

"... yes?"

Shisui held onto his ring as he pulled Haruki's out of the box, before putting the box back into his pocket and holding the two rings up for her to see.

"Look at what's on yours."

Haruki squinted at her ring. On the inner back side, it had the symbol for 'peace' engraved in it in Shisui's handwriting, reminding her of the bracelet she had given Shisui for their first anniversary with the same word on it. Her gaze then travelled to Shisui's band, and she was surprised when she recognised the symbol for 'love' written in her own writing.

"How did you get that?!" she spluttered, baffled by the fact that he had gone to such extremes.

"I tried to see if you'd written it in any letters you gave me, and thankfully, you had it written in one," chortled Shisui victoriously, obviously satisfied with his handiwork. "Thankfully! I was about to resort to breaking into your room and finding if you'd written it in any of your notebooks or something!"

"Did I?!" blushed Haruki, unable to remember what exactly she had written in her birthday letter when she had given Shisui his gift. All she remembered that she had felt so strongly towards Shisui that she decided that she would express her feelings in the letter, but couldn't remember how exactly she had worded it.

"In the letter you gave me for my eighteenth last year! I thought it was cute," winked Shisui, putting his own band back on before beckoning for Haruki's hand. "May I?"

Still embarrassed, Haruki nodded and held out her right hand to Shisui, allowing him to place the ring on her finger.

"Thank you for being my girlfriend these past three or so years," said the Uchiha genuinely, gently brushing his thumb over the diamond on the band. "Thank you for looking after my mother when I'm not around. Thank you for looking after Hinata and Hanabi. Thank you for being the most badass heiress the Hyūga clan has ever seen!"

"Thank you, Shisui," mumbled Haruki as she averted her gaze, only to be pulled into another hug by her loving boyfriend.

"You know, sometimes when I'm away on my missions, there's always a risk that I'll... just, you know, descend into a state of mind that I never want to be in. But whenever I think of you, I'm encouraged to keep on moving forward. Remembering you keeps me sane, and I'm happy that I get to carry around your reminder wherever I go," he explained softly, a poignant look in his eyes as he held onto Haruki.

"And sometimes, when you have to juggle your duties as a jōnin, looking after your sisters, and uphold the standard of being the heiress to your clan, you need to find time for yourself as well," he continued affectionately, stroking Haruki's hair as she silently stood in his embrace. "Just like you always remind me of the importance of loving others, I hope that with this, you can at least be reminded to find peace with everything and everyone around you."

A tear rolled down Haruki's cheek at Shisui's earnest words.

"Thank you, Shisui," she croaked. "I'm so grateful... for you..."

"And I'm grateful for you," he said gently, holding Haruki at arm's length as she wiped away her tears. "Even if something happens and we can't be together anymore, even if you fall out of love with me, I hope that you'll continue to treasure this gift."

"Nothing is going to happen," said Haruki strongly, reaching out to Shisui for yet another hug. "I love you. Only you."

"I love you too, Haruki. It makes me so happy to know you feel the same."

Shisui leaned down and brushed Haruki's bangs out of her face, before pulling her into a passionate kiss.

"Happy birthday, princess."

Author's Note: In Japanese, there are two ways of expressing your love for someone, 1. 大好き (daisuki) and 2. 愛してる (aishiteru). Option 1 is more common, and even though it literally means "like a lot/big like" (lol) it's still used as the equivalent as "I love you." Option 2 isn't used as often, but when it is, it's like... oh, you LOVE love them?! So basically, Haruki got so caught up when she was writing Shisui's birthday card that she said 愛してる instead of 大好き, hence why she's finding it pretty embarrassing now.